My father got himself a new DSLR camera just before his cruise along the scenic rivers of Germany and the Netherlands with my mother (they’re over there now). As a result, he gave me his old Nikon DSLR, including a telephoto lens, for which I am very grateful. Let the fun begin!

This afternoon I went for a walk around Lake Rianhard in Celebration, where there are usually plenty of birds and insects native to Central Florida, some turtles, and occasionally a few alligators. I didn’t see any alligators today, but I did see plenty of herons, egrets, and dragonflies. Naturally I brought the camera along and popped on the telephoto lens to try my hand at taking a few pictures. The telephoto doesn’t have an auto-focus, which made it more challenging to use, but also more fun to play around with.

A green dragonfly on a plant stem.

A blue dragonfly in the marsh.

A dragonfly on a tree root. You can see a little ant crawling along the root in front of him.

A Little Blue Heron in the reeds.

I’m certainly no professional, but hey, it’s a start. I’m looking forward to getting out there again with the camera someday soon. Maybe there’ll be some alligators next time…!

Lately, Yvonne has really been getting into running. A few years ago she ran a half-marathon in Alaska with Team In Training, a group that raises money for cancer research through sponsoring race participants. She has also completed numerous 5ks and 10ks, and she ran the Space Coast Half Marathon in Cocoa, Florida a few months ago. Now that we live near Disneyworld, there are plenty of really fun Disney runs that she’s been signing up for – as have the kids. I am very proud of them! It’s a great way to keep in shape by working toward a series of running goals.

I’ve been a runner for some time now, but I normally just run to stay in shape. I haven’t historically run a bunch of staged runs – 5ks, 10ks, and the like. That said – with Yvonne and the kids getting into amassing medals, how could I not want to join in the fun?

Last week, Yvonne and I ran the Celebration Half Marathon. This was part of an inaugural (that’s a fancy word that means “first”) marathon and half marathon event in Celebration, Florida. I was happy to be a part of this inaugural event. It was a nice run, that took place on a nice, not-too-hot not-too cold morning, that meandered its way around the town of Celebration. The marathon that accompanied the half ran a similar route, but twice… so I was much happier running the half and not the full. If I’m going to run an actual marathon I don’t want to have to see people completing their races and going after the drinks and snacks, knowing that I still have another 13.1 miles to go!

The medals for the race were quite nice (picture below), and I was impressed by the t-shirt they gave out… it is more than a simple white t-shirt; it is made of a nice meshy material that is good for running in (that I don’t know what it’s called), and is multicolored green and white. I’d post a picture of the shirt if I had one, but I don’t – you’ll just have to catch me wearing it one day.

As for recovery – Yvonne and I were both pretty sore after the race, but not overly so. We had prepared for the race beforehand, so aside from some limping around with sore calves for a day or two after the race, there were no problems with completing it and recovering from it. In fact, I was surprised that it was not more difficult to complete than it was.

And now, predictably, I’m looking for more races to sign up for. Maybe the Tower of Terror 10 miler? I hear that’s a fun one. Bring it on!

Me after the race. My dad took this picture – he watched the kids while we raced, and walked with them to various parts of the course to cheer us on.

Yvonne and I after the race with our Celebration Half Marathon medals. Go us!